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JJ: “Finally! A Met Offseason Move to Celebrate!

BQE Admin on January 21, 2026

New York, New York

By John Jastremski

The winter months so far have not been kind to David Stearns and the New York Mets.

Sure, they’ve told you that a plan is in place. Yes, publicly they have remained confident about their process.

However, as of 4 days ago. The plan was not exactly one that had Mets fans jumping for joy.

So far this winter, it’s been the winter of departure. First Brandon Nimmo, but in a two day span Edwin Diaz and Pete Alonso became former Mets.

No disrespect to Jorge Polanco and Luke Weaver, but not exactly the moves that have you high fiving your buddy at work walking into the office.

The Mets last week appeared poised to make a big splash. As of last Thursday, the team was hot and heavy for Cubs All Star outfielder Kyle Tucker.

Tucker was looking for a short term contract with a crazy high yearly salary.

Despite some of the fit concerns I had with the player, on a short term deal, this appeared to be in the David Stearns wheelhouse, until guess who?

Yep… The Dodgers!!!!! Swooped in and made Tucker an offer he couldn’t refuse.

After losing Alonso and Diaz and now missing out on Kyle Tucker, the Mets had to do something this offseason. After all, you just can’t sit on all that Steve Cohen loot!

Thankfully Friday, they pivoted beautifully.

Out of nowhere, the Mets signed infielder Bo Bichette to a three year contract. 

Bichette is a right handed hitting machine. He is a throwback player, puts the ball in play and has exactly the sort of attitude the 2026 Mets should be looking for.

He is a natural shortstop, so he will be moving positions, which certainly contradicts the run prevention narrative you’ve heard throughout this offseason.

However, cast that aside. 

Bichette makes the 2026 Mets a significantly better team.

He can hit behind Juan Soto. He has the right makeup to handle New York City.

Oh and the Phillies were interested! So much for that!

The Bo Bichette signing will bring about a variety of questions about how the rest of the roster will look moving closer to Opening Day.

However, there is no question that the Mets are a much better team than they were on Thursday night.

This was a move that had to be made.

You can listen to my podcast New York, New York on The Ringer Podcast Network on Spotify/Apple Podcasts every Sunday & Thursday. You can watch me nightly at 11 PM on Honda Sports Nite on SNY. 

Call it a New York Cosmos Comeback

BQE Admin on January 21, 2026

Local roots forge path for historic club’s rebirth

By Noah Zimmerman

noah@queensledger.com

The New York Cosmos remain one of the most historic clubs in American soccer history. Founded in 1970, the club has been graced by some of the world’s greatest players, bringing Pelé, Franz Beckenbauer, Raúl, Carlos Mendez, and many other icons to the Metro area.

While it hasn’t all been good, the Cosmos have enjoyed many memorable moments throughout their history in New York City, Long Island, and New Jersey. Now they’ll once again look to establish themselves as a premier spot for high level soccer in the Northeast, hoping to regrow the local roots that made them so popular in the past.

The Cosmos began play in the NASL, winning five titles before the league began to falter and eventually fold. The club attempted a revival with hopes to secure a Major League Soccer expansion franchise in the 2010s. 

From 2013 to 2016 the Cosmos claimed three championships, the only team to win multiple league titles. They also claimed US Open Cup victories against MLS clubs like New York City FC and the New York Red Bulls.

Unfortunately the NASL lost Division II status in 2018 and significant financial issues pushed the club to fold in the years after. The Cosmos took a hiatus during the COVID pandemic, one that became permanent.

Now under former COO Erik Stover, the club is preparing to take the pitch once again. They’ve secured a home stadium at Hinchcliffe Stadium in Patterson, NJ, and are hoping to use that as a backbone for the club’s third iteration.

“The Cosmos are American soccer, good and bad. There’s been a lot of ups and downs,” said Stover, who is now serving as the club’s CEO. “A lot of soccer in the United States hasn’t been done properly and we want to be a part of changing that.”

To not only change the club’s culture but lead others in growth requires a major focus on building local communities, and that’s a central piece of the Cosmos’ plan. They’ve already partnered with roughly 20 teams, academies, and organizations to build stronger networks and pathways to competitive play.

“The whole idea is to be as inclusive as possible to work together in a way that’s cooperative and supportive,” said Stover. “Our plan is for that network to give people opportunities that they wouldn’t have otherwise and we’re off to a good start so far.”

Among these partnerships are youth academy affiliations with clubs like New Jersey’s Morris Elite SC. Other partners are scattered around the five boroughs and Long Island, building a map for the future of the Cosmos and their network.

The club is also turning to former stars and top-level soccer minds to jumpstart the club ahead of their 2026 season. Giuseppe Rossi has joined as a Vice Chairman and head of soccer, bringing him back to Northern New Jersey where he was born and raised. The Cosmos also named Italian coach Davide Corti as the club’s 9th manager and first in the USL era.

On the field, the Cosmos are also looking to recapture previous success. Their first signing was Sebastián Guenzatti, who was with the club during their run of championships in the 2010’s.

Growing up in College Point, Queens, Guenzatti started for four years for the soccer team at Francis Lewis HS before moving to his native Uruguay to join Peñarol’s academy. He signed his first pro deal with Huracán, but soon moved back to the US where he joined the Cosmos.

Guenzatti won two championships on the field and watched teammates seal a third in 2016 as he was injured for the final matches. He was also with the club for their historic triumph over NYC in the Open Cup.

“That first title when we first got together, we only had six months together as a team and it was a big shock for the league,” recalled Guenzatti about his first year back in NY. “We had a lot of hardworking young kids with a lot of talent and bright futures.”

“Seba and the crew did great things for us around 2013. We won some championships and brought soccer back in a different way to a lot of folks in the area,” added Stover.

In essence, that’s what the Cosmos aim to do in 2026 and beyond. Soccer in the US is at its best when local teams have passionate followings and that happens when teams make a point of partnering with the local community and making them a part of the club.

Guenzatti also looked back to his days growing up in Queens and his path to competitive soccer.

“My biggest memories are playing pickup. Right in front of my house there was an abandoned hockey rink so we used to get in there and play all day and all night. My dad would come bring us water,” he said. “Now they turned it into a public soccer field in Queens, right in College Point where I had a lot of memories.”

In their new form, the Cosmos know there is plenty to achieve and strive for in the future. 

“A question we got a lot on Long Island was ‘yeah you won the league, but what’s next?’ and we didn’t really have an answer,” Stover said.

With USL on track to implement promotion and relegation in the near future, the Cosmos hope to make a push for their top division. Perhaps if the USL can get the Division 1 classification it’s been seeking, the Cosmos can finally return to top division play as they once were.

Until then, the focus remains on developing a competitive team and building a new Cosmos culture from the ground up.

“Building a culture that resonates in the community and gives long lasting opportunities to people is extremely important,” stated Stover about his first season goals. “Bringing in players who understand who we are like Seba, bringing in coaches like Davide Corti and directors like Giuseppe Rossi to build a foundation is the most important to me.”

“I’ve seen a lot of people fall through the cracks,” Guenzatti said about his experience growing up with the beautiful game. “I was lucky enough to end up on a team with unbelievable people to help me along the way and not everybody gets that chance. We should give everyone a fair chance to follow their dreams, whether that’s soccer or other things.”

Anti-ICE Chaos is Coming to NYC

BQE Admin on January 21, 2026

Political Whisperer

By Robert Hornak

Get ready, the anti-ICE agitators and paid protesters are preparing to bring the same chaos we are seeing in Minneapolis and Seattle to NYC. 

While NYC has not had ongoing ICE activity that cities like Minneapolis have seen, there have been a few operations in recent months, like in Chinatown in late November that caused great controversy.

And the Trump administration is signaling that NYC will be among the next cities to receive ICE’s attention. A new ICE detention center to hold 1,500 detainees is being prepared in the Hudson Valley. Last year a center that holds 1,000 detainees was reopened in Newark. ICE is preparing for a lot of business in the Metro area. 

After the Chinatown confrontation, where a number of agitators were arrested for blocking ICE and then had physical altercations with the NYPD who were sent to control the crowd, the NY Immigration Coalition put out a statement where they said. “Hundreds of New Yorkers gathered today to stop ICE from attacking our neighbors. Instead of protecting the residents of our city, the NYPD violently confronted and arrested protesters.”

This comment should illustrate the insanity of this operation. ICE was not “attacking” anyone’s “neighbors” and the protestors were the ones initiating violence trying to force their will on the country, which is which is why they were arrested. 

The NYIC continued, “The violence that occurred today could have been avoided had ICE agents not escalated tensions.” In other words, by not submitting to the unruly mobs demands, ICE was creating “escalated tensions.” They then condemned the NYPD for doing their job, demanded they stop “collaborating” with ICE, and demanded that everyone arrested for attacking NYPD officers be released. 

Now, Democratic Socialists are recruiting 4,000 people to form a rapid response operation in NYC and are being trained to obstruct ICE operations, and not in a friendly way. The DSA holds monthly meetings of their Immigrant Justice Working Group, where these trainings, reportedly attended mostly by privileged, white, Gen Z socialists, are conducted. They are also recruiting people to staff their ICE hotline 24 hours a day.

The agenda of these activists is apparent. This is nothing more than an extension of their failed “Defund the Police” movement that they started pushing in 2020. Only now they believe they can shift a short-lived apprehension over police tactics following the death of George Floyd to a condemnation of ICE tactics, spurred by their direct physical confrontation with ICE officers, to achieve a defunding of ICE and an end to their enforcement of immigration laws. 

It’s clear that it’s mainly chaos the socialists are after. They want to tear down systems most Americans feel safety in. This was their tactic in 2020, confront the police with protests that often got physical and violent, then use the video of the police reacting to the violence of the protestors as the call to defund the police. This is exactly the same playbook they are using now, and what got Renee Good killed. 

What’s more baffling is why are so many mainstream Democrats also attacking ICE and opposing efforts to remove illegal aliens, when stopping illegal immigration used to be a standard Democrat position as recently as the Obama presidency, who was often referred to as the deporter-in-chief for his aggressive approach to following immigration law. 

So what changed? Well, Democrats in blue states have been losing population in recent decades, which equals fewer congressional seats. Democrats fought to include illegal aliens in the census starting in 1980, but the decline in population has not been offset enough with immigrants, legal and illegal. And therefore congressional seats have been moving from blue to red states. 

And this is the real endgame. Democrats are trying to stymie enforcement long enough to get the many millions of illegals the Biden administration allowed to flow into the country, with directions for them to head to places like NYC. If they can destroy ICE and keep those millions of illegals here until 2030, they will alter the census and the balance of power between red and blue states for the next decade. 
Robert Hornak is a veteran political consultant who has previously served as the Deputy Director of the Republican Assembly Leader’s NYC office and as Executive Director of the Queens Republican Party. He can be reached at rahornak@gmail.com and @roberthornak on X.

 

Long Island City’s Forgotten Great Builder

BQE Admin on January 21, 2026

GEOFFREY COBB

Author, “Greenpoint Brooklyn’s Forgotten Past”

gcobb91839@Aol.com

A famous quote is written on the memorial to the great London architect Sir Christopher Wren, “If you seek his monument, look around you,” and the quote also applies to Michael Degnon in Long Island City. Though a forgotten figure today, Degnon built many of the industrial buildings that still characterize the area.

His legacy goes far beyond Long Island City. Degnon’s construction projects helped shape New York City. Degnon was born of Irish parents on a farm in Geneva, Ohio, in 1857. His father died when he was just a child leaving his widowed mother to run the farm. Farm work helped Degnon develop into a powerful man who stood six-foot-four with broad shoulders. He came of age as America needed massive construction projects to link the nation by rails and became a contractor, successfully completing several big jobs in different States. By age twenty-five Degnon had become a millionaire.

Degnon formed a construction company in 1896 and arrived in New York City the following year. The city needed massive infrastructure projects and Degnon proved to be an engineering problem solver. In 1897, bridge builder Buck Lefferts hired Degnon’s firm to build the pneumatic caissons under the East River and towers and anchorages on the Brooklyn side of the Williamsburg Bridge.

A New York Times article on November 6, 1904, heaped praise on Degnon, saluting not only his engineering prowess, but also his amazing personality, noting Degnon’s equanimity in solving complex logistical and engineering problems and noted that his staff was devoted to him. The reporter also claimed Degenon’s capacity for work was unlimited, but that it was” no greater than his good temper, his tact, and his genial manners.” He also possessed an uncanny ability to
calculate the cost of massive building projects almost precisely.

No sub-contractor built more of the Manhattan subway system than Degnon. His firm won contracts, totaling millions of
dollars in 1904, the equivalent of billions today. His firm built the tunnels and lines that connected Manhattan and the Bronx as well as much of today’s #1 train. Degnon’s most difficult Subway tasks were the excavations under Park Row, where he had to ensure that four above ground trolley tracks could continue to run, even as the earth was scooped and the tunnel built beneath them. Building the City Hall loop also  necessitated burrowing under the foundations of the old Times Building and bisecting several Post Office vaults. His firm also managed to dig through the quicksand where a
lake once existed around Canal Street. He skillfully managed to tunnel under 42nd Street, despite heavy traffic over excavations, boring through solid rock while not disturbing pipelines, elevated railroad supports, and sewers. He built what today are the New Jersey Path train lines into Manhattan and many of the tunnels serving Pennsylvania Station.

His greatest legacies are in Queens. His firm constructed the Steinway Tunnel under the East River from Sixtieth Street, Manhattan, to Long Island City and the elevated extension to the Bridge Plaza in Queens that allowed the #7 train line to be built. He also bought up wetlands between Corona and Flushing and filled in the swampy ground with ash, which eventually allowed the creation of Flushing Meadows Park, the largest park in the borough of Queens. A visionary, Degnon transformed Long Island City into a giant manufacturing hub where Corporations could set up factories and transport their goods to by railroad. His firm bought 362 building lots on six acres of swampy ground in and around Jackson Avenue where he would construct the massive Degnon Terminal, which allowed companies to either purchase or lease the land from the Degnon Realty & Terminal Improvement Company and build a factory.

He shrewdly completed the terminal’s first industrial structure in 1909, the same year the Queensboro Bridge opened and transformed the borough. The building became the now iconic Loose-Wiles Sunshine Biscuit Company, known as the “Thousand Window Bakery”, which allowed the floors to be flooded with sunlight. The building became the largest factory of its kind in the United States. The biscuit company manufactured their trademark Sunshine Biscuits here, as well as Krispy Saltines, Hydrox Cookies (which would become Oreos) and the world-famous Animal Crackers. The plant closed in 1965 and stands today as LaGuardia Community College. The terminal was located near the massive Sunnyside rail yard of the Long Island Railroad. In 1913 the terminal became linked by rail to the yard through Degnon’s construction of a private rail system known as the “Montauk Cut-Off.” The huge factory complex and its perfect transportation infrastructure enticed some of the largest American manufacturers to set up shop in Long Island City, soon transforming the area into one of the largest industrial areas in the United States. Some of the Terminal’s early clients included the Packard Automobile Company, American Ever Ready Battery Company, and American Chicle Company. Degnon decided to build an elegant mansion.

In 1910 he purchased sixteen acres in Jamaica Estates, the future childhood home of President Donald Trump. He built the estate’s sewer and utilities systems before building a grand residence that he donated to the Passionist fathers
shortly before his death in 1925. Few men in the history of New York City left a greater architectural legacy than he did.

How Queens, NY Businesses Are Legally Reducing Income Tax

Dan on January 21, 2026

Contributed By: Dan Rose

As a New York tax consultant, I regularly sit down with business owners who share a common frustration: operating in one of the highest-taxed states in the country while watching their hard-earned profits diminish each April. What many don’t realize is that the tax code itself provides numerous pathways to legally and significantly reduce that burden. The businesses thriving in New York aren’t just earning more; they’re keeping more through strategic, IRS-approved methods that any qualifying business can implement.

The past year brought meaningful shifts in federal tax law, and those changes have opened doors that savvy Queens, NY entrepreneurs are now walking through. Here’s how they’re doing it.

Reducing Income Tax By Growing Your Retirement Fund

Perhaps no strategy offers a cleaner win-win than maximizing contributions to qualified retirement plans. When a business owner contributes to a SEP IRA, Solo 401(k), or similar qualified plan, that money comes directly off the top of their taxable income. The IRS essentially rewards you for building your own financial future.

What makes this particularly powerful for New York business owners is the compounding effect. Because these contributions reduce your adjusted gross income at the federal level, they simultaneously lower what you owe to New York State. In a state where top earners face some of the steepest rates in the nation, this dual benefit creates substantial savings that accumulate year after year.

The flexibility here matters too. Business owners can choose from multiple plan structures depending on whether they have employees, how much they want to contribute, and how their business is organized. A comprehensive look at IRS-approved investments designed to lower income tax for New York residents can help clarify which approach fits your situation best.

  • Tax Savings: Contributions reduce both federal and state taxable income in the year they’re made.
  • Wealth Building: Funds grow tax-deferred, compounding over time without annual tax drag.
  • Flexibility: Different plan types accommodate businesses of all sizes and structures.

Accelerating Deductions Through Equipment and Asset Purchases

Federal tax law now allows businesses to deduct the full cost of qualifying equipment, machinery, vehicles, and software in the year of purchase rather than spreading those deductions across many years. This accelerated approach, available through Section 179 expensing and bonus depreciation, transforms how business owners think about capital investments.

The practical impact is straightforward: instead of waiting years to recover the cost of a major purchase through gradual depreciation, you capture the entire tax benefit immediately. For a growing company investing in its operations, this can mean a dramatically lower tax bill in a year when cash flow matters most.

Recent changes to federal law have made these provisions more generous and, importantly, permanent. Businesses no longer need to worry about expiring incentives or rushing purchases before arbitrary deadlines. The rules are stable, which allows for thoughtful, strategic planning rather than reactive decision-making.

According to NYC’s business resources on Section 179, most tangible goods purchased for business use qualify for this treatment, from office equipment and computers to vehicles and manufacturing machinery.

  • Cash Flow Benefits: Immediate deductions improve your financial position when you need it most.
  • Strategic Timing: Coordinating purchases with high-income years maximizes the value of each deduction.
  • Compliance Assurance: Proper documentation of business use protects your deductions during any review.

Taking Advantage of New York’s Evolving Tax Landscape

New York’s budget legislation continues to adjust the state’s tax structure, and staying current with these changes creates opportunities. Recent modifications have introduced modest rate reductions for middle-income brackets, raised thresholds that determine when businesses must make estimated payments, and restructured certain payroll taxes based on geographic zones within the metropolitan area.

For pass-through entities like S corporations, partnerships, and LLCs, where business income flows through to the owner’s personal return, these state-level adjustments directly affect the bottom line. Understanding how your business location, payroll size, and entity structure interact with current rules can reveal planning opportunities that weren’t available even a year ago.

The key is recognizing that New York’s tax environment isn’t static. What worked optimally three years ago may no longer represent the best approach. Periodic reviews with a qualified professional ensure you’re capturing benefits as they become available rather than discovering missed opportunities after the fact.

Why Proactive Planning Makes the Difference

The common thread connecting all these strategies is intentionality. Tax reduction doesn’t happen by accident, and it certainly doesn’t happen in March when you’re gathering documents for your accountant. The New York businesses seeing real results are the ones treating tax planning as a year-round discipline, reviewing their positions quarterly, and making decisions with tax implications in mind.

Whether it’s timing a major equipment purchase to align with a high-revenue year, maximizing retirement contributions before year-end, or restructuring how compensation flows through the business, small decisions made throughout the year compound into meaningful savings.

The tax code is complex, but it’s also full of IRS approved investment opportunities and other legitimate tax saving methods for those who know where to look. Working with a knowledgeable tax consultant helps ensure you’re capturing every available benefit while staying fully compliant with both federal and New York State requirements. In a state where the tax burden is undeniably heavy, strategic planning isn’t just helpful; it’s essential for long-term success.

 

 

Contributed By: Dan Rose, A Senior Local Business Guide Specializing In Tax Consulting In NYC

Ready to Lower Your Tax Burden?
If you are looking to implement these strategies and keep more of what you earn,
our team is here to help you build a personalized plan that fits your situation.

Schedule a consultation today at https://empiretaxusa.com/ and discover how much you could be saving.

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Empire Tax Planning 845 3rd Ave f6, New York, NY 10022

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